James V. Franco: Some voter fraud relationships and the PBA president's lawsuit

The trial of Board of Elections Commissioner Ed McDonough continues and one of the questions everyone has is whether or not he will take the stand.

I honestly don't know what he'll do but the general rule of thumb is if he thinks he is winning then he won't and if he thinks he is losing then he will. If you remember, former Councilman Michael LoPorto did an outstanding job on the stand in his second re-trial and one reason the jury found him not guilty. But, McDonough and LoPorto have two different personalities so I'm not sure what McDonough will do.

Tough call. It's not as if there isn't a lot at stake here -- namely his job and whether or not he goes to prison.

Earlier this week, former City Clerk Bill McInerney testified and pretty much stuck to the same story he said when he testified during the first trial, where McDonough and LoPorto were tried together and that ended in a hung jury.

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McInerney maintains he did the majority of forgeries on his own and didn't tell anyone, including McDonough, what he was up to.

Everything in Troy has a history and for those of you who don't know, McDonough and McInerney grew up around the corner from each other and McDonough's father by the same name got McInerney at job at the state Assembly. Before the elder McDonough got indicted, convicted and sent to prison for running an insurance scam, he was a wheel in the Democratic Party over in Albany as well being chair in this county.

Actually, another bit of irony in this whole voter fraud mess, is Bob Mirch, one of the guys who uncovered the scheme to defraud voters in the 2009 Working Families Party primary, learned how to manipulate minor party lines by McDonough Sr. when Mirch was working for the Dems alongside state Independence Party Vice Chair Tom Connolly.

However, they did it legally and with some style, if you can call running a pizza deliver guy for a host of offices and winning every race style. Of course, I'm talking about Chris Consuello and the Republicans's penchant for stealing the Working Families Party line by running and electing ghost candidates. But, they did it by enrolling people in the party and them making sure they got to the polls to vote instead of just forging everything in site.

I know I've mentioned all this before, but the McInerney/McDonough friendship made me want to bring it up again.

Anyway, it comes down to whether or not McDonough forged anything and whether or not he knew they were forged since he is charged with possession of a forged instrument and part of proving that charge is proving he knew the ballots are forged.

I won't weigh in one way or another because it's up to the jury to decide. We'll know soon enough.

I do know two people are watching with more interest than most and that is former Council President Clement Campana and Councilman Gary Galuski. After the jury decides McDonough fate, they are the last two to still have their cases pending and either they will get a trump card or the special prosecutor, Trey Smith, gets one.

PBA president's lawsuit

A judge ruled parts of the lawsuit brought by Police Benevolent Association Bob Fitzgerald can proceed against former Mayor Harry Tutunjian and Police Chief John Tedesco and it's going to be interesting to see if it actually ever makes it in front of a judge or if the city decides to settle.

If you remember, in 2007, there was going to be a new list generated for officer's who want a promotion to sergeant. At the time, the residency requirement was rearing its head again -- which I don't get because it's on the books but it's never enforced -- and Officer Steve Seeney decided to write a list of his colleagues who lived outside the city in an attempt to hurt their chances at becoming sergeant.

Obviously, some officers didn't take too kindly to that and supposedly some threatened Seeney with bodily harm. Fitzgerald got wind of it, talked to Seeney about it and Seeney took it to mean Fitzgerald was actually the one making the threats.

Tutunjian and Tedesco, who was an assistant chief at the time, suspended Fitzgerald with pay and ordered a psychiatric evaluation.

Fitzgerald initially was asking for $12 million but a judge tossed a bunch of the more frivolous charges out and the only ones that still stand are the claims that Tutunjian and Tedesco violated Fitzgerald's freedom of speech.

Like I said, it's going to be interesting to see if this one ever makes it in front of a judge.